Stowages for inflatable liferafts and the like



Sept. 26, 1967 s. A. TUCK' 3,343,188

STOWAGES FOR INFLATABLE LIFERAFTS AND THE LIKE Filed June 18, 1965 INVENTOR: 53mm AW-ml. T- A E (e *EM United States Patent 3,343,188 STOWAGES FOR INFLATABLE LIFERAFTS AND THE LIKE Sidney A. Tuck, West Kirby, Cheshire, England, assignor to Frankenstein Group Limited, a company of Great Britain, Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man Filed June 18, 1965, Ser. No. 465,116 3 Claims. (Cl. 9-33) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A buoyant container for a deflated liferaft and means for inflation thereof wherein a tripline actuates the means and the closure for the container bursts on inflation including hydrostatically actuated means releasing the closure and causing inflation of the raft.

This invention relates to stowages for inflatable articles such as liferafts which, when rolled or folded up in deflated condition, require to be protected against the eifects of moisture, sunlight and accidental damage in a manner which will not inhibit their automatic inflation when dropped into the water from a ship or aircraft.

More particularly the invention has reference to that type of rigid stowage which comprises two identical or similar members moulded in a hard non-metallic material (such at resinated glass fibre) and secured edge-to-edge to form a buoyant, generally cylindrical enclosure for the deflated liferaft, the securing means employed being adapted to give way under the internal pressure set up when a self-inflation mechanism incorporated in the liferaft is tripped through the medium of a painter line connecting the latter to the parent ship or aircraft.

The stowage members may be secured in assembled relation by means of metal tensioning devices connecting the ends of straps which pass around the stowage, or directly connecting the edges of its members, at spaced positions, such tensioning devices being designed to fail in shear or tension and usually in such manner that the bursting-open of the floating stowage will first occur along one side thereof to facilitate escape of the expanding raft.

In yet another known arrangement the metallic tensioning devices aforesaid are replaced by a cemented joint in which at least one continuous sealing strip of resilient cellular material is cemented to the opposed edges of the stowage members.

When a liferaft stowage of the type referred to is installed on shipboard, the normal practice is to secure it in a suitable cradle by a lashing capable of being quickly released, either by hand whilst the ship remains afloat or through the medium of an hydrostatic device which functions automatically at a predetermined depthshould the ship founder before the stowage can be jettisoned.

This latter eventuality, however, is liable to result in the raft, despite its self-inflation, being dragged down by its own painter line if such line be stout enough to obviate risk of the raft breaking adrift after a normal jettison launch into a rough sea.

The object of the present invention is to provide a simple means whereby, without recourse to a second hydrostatic device set to release the painter line after the raft has inflated, the separation of such raft from an already foundered ship can be ensured.

According to the present invention, a liferaft or like stowage of the type referred to, and located on shipboard through the medium of a lashing connected to an hydrostatic release device, is characterised in that the painter line associated with the liferaft is connected to the automatically-releasable lashing anchorage provided by the hydrostatic device in such manner as to be freed immediately such device operates, and also has a relatill/ely weak connection to a permanent anchorage on the s 1p.

The accompanying drawing is a schematic view of one arrangement according to the present invention for connecting a stowed liferaft to a ship in an automaticallyreleasable manner.

Before describing the example illustrated, it will be assumed that the rigid stowage assembly, containing the deflated liferaft and its self-inflation mechanism (preferably packed within a readily-rupturable fabric valise), together with a compactly-stored length of painter line A connected at one end to the raft and led through a water-tight guide in the stowage, rests upon a pair of metal or other chocks which are permanently attached to the deck of a ship at any convenient position.

T o locate the stowage against accidental dislodgement (for example, by boarding seas), it is secured by means of a lashing which conveniently takes the form of a webbing band C whose ends are fixed to the spaced chocks at one side of the stowage, the bight of such band being brought over the central part of such stowage and releasably anchored between the chocks at the other side of the latter.

The releasable anchorage for the lashing is provided by an eyebolt D projecting from a known form of hydrostatic device E whose casing is swivellably attached to the ships deck by means of a shackle F connecting an apertured lug G therein to a fixed eye-plate H.

The device E contains a flexible diaphragm which will D is normally held captive.

The end of a painter line A protruding from the stowage has fixed thereto a ring I adapted to be engaged with a projecting spur J on the eye-bolt D, in the normal position of which such spur is close enough to the casing of the hydrostatic device E to hold the ring I in place.

A light cord K connects the painter-line ring I to the permanently-anchored shackle F in a relatively weak manner, that is to say, it will break under a load substantially lower than the minimum breaking strength of the painter line A and shackle F. For example, in a case where such minimum strength is 1000 kg., the cord K may be designed to fail at to 360 kg.

The bight of the stowage lashing C is coupled to the eyebolt D of the hydrostatic release device E by a senhouse slip L or other manually-operable means whereby the lashing C can readily be freed should time permit of the stowage being jettisoned in the normal manner, the resultant tug on the painter line A initiating the selfinflation of the contained liferaft which eventually bursts clear of the floating stowage, whilst remaining tethered to the hydrostatic release device E on the ship until out free by survivors.

If, however, the ship founders before the crew can free the stowage from its cradle, the hydrostatic device E will operate at a predetermined depth to release the eyebolt D and hence the stowage.

The inherent buoyancy of the latter causes the painter line A, which remains connected to the permanentlyanchored shackle F, to tighten and hence to initiate the self-inflation of the raft, whose rapidly increasing drag eventually parts the cord K and allows the raft to come freely to the surface trailing the painter line A, which may afterwards be cut away.

Although the invention has been particularly described hereinbefore as applied to individually-stowed liferafts, it is equally applicable to a larger form of stowage containing two or more such rafts whose respective painter lines are collectively connected to a releasable anchorage on the Patented Sept. 26, 1967 hydrostatic device and also have weak connections to a permanent anchorage on the ship.

Furthermore, other forms of weak link may be substituted for the cord connection K, although the latter has proved adequately reliable in practice. For example, an integral or other continuation of the painter line A beyond the ring I may be connected to the-lug G'or some other anchorage on the hydrostatic device E by means of a shackle whose pin will break or pull out under relatively small load, or again the painter line A may be led directly from the liferaft to the weak link aforesaid and be provided with a branch being equal in strength to the rest of the line, such branch being engaged with the spur J on the eye'bolt D of the hydrostatic device E.

I claim:

1. A buoyant container for a collapsed inflatable liferaft and self-contained means for effecting inflation of the same, comprising a trip line connected to, said inflation means and extending outwardly of said container, closure means for said container adapted to permit bursting open of the latter in response to inflation of the liferaft therewithin, a lashing normally eflecting location of said container on shipboard, an anchorage on shipboard, an hydrostatic release device providing a temporary connection between said lashing and saidanchorage, an eye-bolt normally captive in said release device and havingsaid lashing attached thereto, a spur on said eye-bolt for engagement by said trip line and normally disposed adjacent said release deviceso as to maintain said trip line engaged therewith, an additional but relatively weak link adapted to provide temporary connection between said trip line and said anchorage on release of said lashing by said hydrostatic device.

2. A buoyant container for a collapsed inflatable liferaft and self-contained means for eflecting inflation of the same, comprising a trip line connected to said inflation means and extending outwardly of said container, a ring at the outer end of said trip line, closure means for said container adapted to permit bursting open of the latter in response to inflation of the liferaft therewithin, a lashing normally effecting location of said container on shipboard, an anchorage on shipboard, an hydrostatic release device providing a temporary connection between said lashing and said anchorage, an eye-bolt normally captive in said release device and having said lashing attached thereto, a spur on said eye-bolt for engagement by said trip-line ring so long as said eye-bolt is held captive by said release means, a light cord connecting said trip-line ring tov said anchorage. and serving temporarily to secure said trip line on release of said lashing by said hydrostatic device.

3. A buoyant container for a collapsed inflatable liferaft and self-contained means for effecting inflation of the same, comprising a trip line connected to said inflation means and extending outwardly of said container, a ring near the outer end of said trip line, closure means for said container adapted to permit bursting open of the latter in response to inflation of the liferaft therewithin, a lashing normally effecting location of said container on shipboard, an anchorage on shipboard, an hydrostatic release device providing a temporary connection between said lashing and said anchorage, an eye-bolt normally captive in said release device and having said lashing attached thereto, a spur on said eye-bolt for engagement by said trip-line ring so long as said eye-bolt is held captive by said release means, the continuation of said trip-line beyond said ring being connected to said anchorage in a relatively weak manner.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,360,848 10/1944 Bryant 933 X 2,609,549 9/1952 Krupp 911.1 2,702,679 2/ 1955 Culver 244-148 X FERGUS S. MIDDLETON, Primary Examiner.

MILTON BUCHLER, Examiner.

T. W. BUCKMAN, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A BUOYANT CONTAINER FOR A COLLAPSED INFLATABLE LIFERAFT AND SELF-CONTAINED MEANS FOR EFFECTING INFLATION OF THE SAME, COMPRISING A TRIP LINE CONNECTED TO SAID INFLATION MEANS AND EXTENDING OUTWARDLY OF SAID CONTAINER, CLOSURE MEANS FOR SAID CONTAINER ADAPTED TO PERMIT BURSTING OPEN OF THE LATTER IN RESPONSE TO INFLATION OF THE LIFERAFT THEREWITHIN, A LASHING NORMALLY EFFECTING LOCATION OF SAID CONTAINER ON SHIPBOARD, AN ANCHORAGE ON SHIPBOARD, AN HYDROSTATIC RELEASE DEVICE PROVIDING A TEMPORARY CONNECTION BETWEEN SAID LASHING AND SAID ANCHORAGE, AN EYE-BOLT NORMALLY CAPTIVE IN SAID RELEASE DEVICE AND HAVING SAID LASHING ATTACHED THERETO, A SPUR ON SAID EYE-BOLT FOR ENGAGEMENT BY SAID TRIP LINE AND NORMALLY DISPOSED ADJACENT SAID RELEASE DEVICE SO AS TO MAINTAIN SAID TRIP LINE ENGAGEMENT THEREWITH, AN ADDITIONAL BUT RELATIVELY WEAK LINK ADAPTED TO PROVIDE TEMPORARY CONNECTION BETWEEN SAID TRIP LINE AND SAID ANCHORAGE ON RELEASE OF SAID LASHING BY SAID HYDROSTATIC DEVICE. 